Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy issued alerts Wednesday about potential Russian drone assaults throughout the day, reporting that over 100 drones had entered Ukrainian airspace as Moscow shifts its attack strategy to daytime operations.
“Russia continues its strikes and is doing so brazenly – deliberately targeting our railway infrastructure and civilian sites in our cities,” Zelenskyy said in a post on X.
Moscow has traditionally conducted major drone and missile assaults under cover of darkness since the conflict began more than four years ago. However, recent weeks have seen Russia repeatedly launching hundreds of drones and missiles during daylight hours.
The military set a new record for weapons deployed in a single assault on March 24. Daytime strikes cause greater disruption to everyday civilian activities.
“It is important to repel every attack with resilience. It is important to support Ukraine and not remain silent about Russia’s war,” Zelenskyy added.
Ukrainian air defense forces confirmed that Russia launched 139 drones against the nation starting at 6 p.m. Tuesday (1500 GMT), with 111 successfully intercepted or disabled.
While Moscow claims it does not deliberately target civilians, thousands have died during the conflict. Russian officials justify strikes on civilian infrastructure as legitimate military targets that weaken Ukraine’s defense capabilities. Ukraine has recently escalated its own long-distance attacks on Russian energy facilities, though on a more limited scale.
